Torrington man fatally shot by Connecticut State Trooper identified

TORRINGTON - A Connecticut State Trooper lieutenant fatally shot a Torrington man in self-defense after the man charged him with a knife on Route 8 in Torrington, early Thursday morning, police said.

Police have identified the man as 78-year-old Frank Escribano and the state police officer as Lt. Clayton Brown, the commanding officer of Connecticut State Police Troop B. According to the Connecticut State Judicial Branch website, Escribano did not have a criminal history.

Route 8 northbound between exits 42 and 44 was closed until about 5:15 p.m. while investigators mapped the scene and finished their on-site investigation,

According to state police spokesman Lt. J. Paul Vance, shortly after 9 a.m. the veteran trooper was travelling northbound on Route 8 when he overheard a report of a man walking on the side of the highway with a knife.

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Brown "almost immediately" encountered Escribano walking at the intersection of the entrance ramp and the right lane of the highway's northbound line of traffic, Vance said. According to a press release issued by Vance, Brown stopped to approach Escribano, blocking northbound traffic in the process.

The trooper attempted to verbally engage Escribano, but he charged the trooper "in a threatening manner" while wielding a knife. After retreating as much as possible with Escribano refusing to stop, Brown fired his Sig Sauer .40 caliber pistol and shot Escribano, police said.

Vance said he did not know how many shots were fired, but that all shell casings have been retrieved for the on-going investigation.

Brown immediately called emergency medical services and administered care to Escribano until an ambulance arrived. Vance said Campion Ambulance arrived quickly and transported the wounded Escribano to Charlotte Hungerford Hospital. Shortly after arriving at the hospital, he was pronounced dead.

Brown was unharmed. He has been placed on desk duty while the incident is under investigation.

Vance said Brown followed protocol in brandishing and firing his weapon since he was faced with the threat of a deadly weapon. He said the lieutenant would not have chosen a Taser in this situation if he had been armed with one.

"Only patrol officers carry Tasers; officers do not," Vance said. "And from all indications this was an instance where the use of deadly force would have been called for." Vance did note, however, that the investigation into the incident is in preliminary stages.

The Connecticut State Police Eastern District Major Crime Squad is investigating the incident under the supervision of the Litchfield State's Attorney office. The Eastern District Major Crime Squad is leading the investigation to avoid potential conflicts of interest.

Numerous witnesses who were travelling behind the state trooper and witnessed the instantaneous encounter are being subject to interviews during the investigation process. Vance said Brown used his patrol car to block traffic, so those behind him were witness to the entire, brief incident.

Residents of the apartments across the street from the northbound on ramp of exit 43 claimed they heard a gunshot around 9:05 a.m., and were surprised with the sudden rush of Torrington Police and state police cars.

"I've been here [in Torrington] for 10 years, and I never have seen this many cops before," a Torrington resident said. "Every cop you could think of was here, and they kept coming and coming."

Rick Thomason, Jason Siedzik and Jenny Golfin also contributed to this report.